Croft



(No Model.) 4 sheets sheet 1.

J. I. THORNYOROPT.

\ STEAM GENERATOR.

No. 603,800; P tented May IO, 1898 0 (No Model I 4 Sheets-Shet'Z.

J. I. THORNYOROFT. STEAM GENERATOR.

No. 603,800. Patented May 10,1898.

WM: 5 W 0M.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets- Sheet 3.

J. I. THORNYOROPT.

' STEAM GENERATOR.

N0. 603,800. I Patented May 10,1898.

(No Model.) 4 Sheets-Sheet 4.

J. I. THORNYGROFT. STEAM GENERATOR.

No. 603,800. Patented May 10,1898,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JOHN ISAAC THORNYOROFT, OF LONDON, ENGLAND.

STEAM-G ENERATO R.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 603,800, dated May 10, 1898.

Application filed July 12, 1897. Serial No. 644,338. (No model.)

To all whom it may conccrnr Be it known that 1, JOHN ISAAC THORNY- CROFT, a subject of the Queen of Great Britain and Ireland, residing at Chiswick,London, in the county of Middlesex, England, have invented Improvements in Steam-Generators, of which the following is a specification. This invention ofimprovements in steamgenerators has for its object to provide steamgenerators of water-tube type specially adapted for land use and to form batteries the several units of which are capable of being controlled independently of one another to suit requirement. 1

The invention consists in the novel features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter described, and set. forth in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 shows, partlyin front elevation and partly in longitudinal vertical section,'a portion of a battery of steam-generators according to this invention. Fig. 2 is across-section on the line 00 a: of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a cross-section on the line y y of Fig. 1, but with the steam-generating portion removed; and Fig. 4 is a sectional plan on the line 2 z of Fig. 1.

Each steam-generating unit of the battery of steamgenerators comprises an upper steam-drum 1, a lower water vessel 2, two series of bent tubes 3, connecting the upper side of the steam-drum to the upper side of the water vessel, a central series of bent downtake-tubes 4:, connecting the lower-side of the steam-drum to the upper side of the water vessel, and a, chamber 5, that contains the said steam-drum, water vessel, and their connecting-tubes. This chamber has its side, front, and rear Walls 5, 5 and 5, respectively, made of brickwork or other solid refractory material and is provided with a lower central seating 6 for the water vessel 2, upper removable closures 7 7, resting against the two series of bent tubes 3, two fire-grates 8 8, arranged between the side walls 5 and the central seating 6, and an exit-opening 9 in its rear wall 5.

The ends of the steam-drum 1 and water vessel 2 extend through and are supported by the front and rear walls 5 and 5, respec tively, of the chamber 5, which are strengthened at these parts by metal plates 5 and 5,

ports 6 respectively, built into them. The water vessel 2 is carried by the central seating 6, aided by front and rear metal frames or supv The seating 6 is made hollow, so as to leave below the water vessel2 a passageway 6", through which access can when desired be gained to the rear end of the smokeboX, hereinafter described, and to the exitopening 9. This passage way is normally closed at both ends by doors 6, detachably secured to the frames or supports 6.

' The two series of bent tubes 3 are arranged to form with the side walls 5 of the chamber two fire-boxes above the grates 8 8 and with the said steam-drum 1, water vessel 2, and rear wall 5 a smoke-box 10, that can be placed in direct connection with a fiue 9 through the exit-opening 9 and at the center of which the downtake-tubes 4 are arranged. The tubes 3 in each series may be spaced apart, so that the flames and hot gas from the fuel on the grates may pass freely around them and into the smoke-box 10, and thence away through the exit-opening 9. The said tubes in each series are, however, preferably bent and arranged as shown, so that some of them are close together for the greater portion of their length in order to form inner and outer close tubulous walls 3 3 respectively, of a flue 3, within which the other tubes of the series are placed, the tubes forming the outer wall 3 being bent at their lower ends to form inlets 3 from the fire-box to the bottom of the said fiue, and thetubes forming said innor wall being bent at their upper ends to form outlets 3 from the top of the said flue into the smoke-box 10. The lower ends of tate which operation the portion of the chamber 5 above them and the closures is enlarged, as shown. The roof 5 of the chamber 5 is of brickwork carried by angle-iron supports 5.

it can be led away to any desired place.

The front wall 5 of the chamber 5 may be of brickwork or metal or, as shown, of a metal frame 5*, built in with'brickwork. case it is provided with large openings normally closed by removable doors 13 and 14, arranged opposite the upper and lower portions, respectively, 'of each flue 3, so that by removing such doors ready access can be gained to the fiu'es for the purpose of cleaning or replacing the tubes 3. The fire-doors 15 and ash-pit doors 16 are hinged to plates 15 and 16, respectively secured to the metal framework 5* in the front wall of the chamber 5.

Any suitable number of steam generators or units of the kind hereinbeforedescribed can be arranged together to form a battery. For this purpose the several chambers 5 are built in a row to form a single structure, the flue 9 being arranged to extend across the back of all the chambers, so as to be common to them, and each opening 9 is provided with a separate damper 9", that is capable of being conveniently raised and lowered, as by means of a chain 9 extending over guidepulleys 9 to the front of the generator, where it is provided with a counterweight 9 The steam-exit pipe 17 from each drum is connected to a stop-valve 18, that is connected by a branch pipe 19 to a main steam-supply pipe 20, common to all the steam-generators. The roof of the flue 9 is made to serve as a platform or gallery 21, from which access can be obtained to each of the stop-valves and the main steam-pipe. The baffling devices 1, arranged in each steam-drum opposite the upper ends of the tubes 3, may be of any suitable construction. The safety-valve 22 of each steam-drum may conveniently discharge escaping steam into a pipe 23, by which The blow-off pipe 24 from each water vessel 2 is connected to a main longitudinal blow-off pipe 25, that is common to all the vessels and islocated in a covered trench 26 at the front of the battery of steam-generators.

By the construction described it will be seen that a compact steam-generating plant of great power can be obtained, the several steam-generating portions or units of which are capable of being independently and easily controlled to suit requirement.

What I claim is- 1. Asteam-generatorcomprisingachamber having its side, front and rear walls of solid refractory material and provided internally with a lower central setting or support, two upper and lateral closures, and two fire-grates arranged between the lower central setting and the side walls, a steam-drum extending through and carried by the front and rear walls of the chamber, a water vessel arranged below said steam-drum and carried by the lower central setting or support, two series of bent tubes 3 connecting the steam-drum and water vessel and arranged to form with these parts and the rear wall of the chamber In either a smoke-box and with the side walls of said chamber two fire-boxes located above said fire-grates, and downtaketubes connecting said steam-drum and water vessel, the part of the rear wall of the chamber opposite the smoke-box being formed with an exit-passage for hot gases, substantially as described.

2. A steam-generator comprisinga chamber having its side, front and rear walls of solid refractory materialand provided with a lower central setting or support, two fire-grates located between opposite sides of said support and the side walls of said chamber, two upper removable closures carried by the said side walls, and an exit-opening in its rear wall, a steam-drum and Water vessel arranged one above the other and transversely of the chamber, two series of bent tubes connecting said steam-drum and water vessel and inclined to each other so as to form with the steam-drum, water vessel and the front, back and side walls and roof of said chamber a central smoke-box opposite the exit-opening in the rear wall, two lateral fire-boxes above the fire-grates and an air or clearance space above the tubes and steam-drum, and downtaketubes connecting saidsteam-drum and water vessel, substantially as described.

3. A steam-generator comprising a chamber or casing of solid refractory material, an upper steam-drum, lower water vessel and two series of bent connecting-tubes 3 extending transversely of said chamber and forming therewith a central smoke-box and two lateral fire-boxes, a lower central support for said water vessel and two fire-grates arranged at opposite sides thereof, said central support having a passage-way extending therethrough from the front of the generator to the rear of the smoke-box and provided with removable doors or closures, substantially as and for the purpose described.

4. A steam-generator comprising an upper steam-drum, a lower water vessel and two groups of bent tubes 3 connecting said steamdrum and water vessel, and a chamber or casing of solid refractory material surrounding said parts and forming therewith a central smoke-box and lateral fire-boxes, the front wall of said chamber being formed with openings arranged opposite the groups of tubes and normally closed by removable doors, substantiallyas and for the purpose described.

5. A steam-generator comprising a chamber inner and outer close tubulous walls of flues within which the other tubes of the series are placed and the tubes forming said outer wall being bent at their lower ends to form inlets to the bottoms of said lines and the tubes forming said inner wall being bent at their upper ends to form outlets from the top of said flue into said smoke-box, the front wall of said chamber or casing being formed with openin gs opposite the upper and lower portions of each of the lines formed by said tubes and provided with removable covers or doors that normally close said openings, substantially as and for the purpose described.

6. A steam-generator comprising an upper steam-drum, a lower water vessel and two groups of bent tubes 3 connecting said steamdrum and water vessel, and a chamber, or casing of solid refractory material surrounding said parts and forming therewith a central smoke-box and lateral fire-boxes,the front wall of said chamber being built up of a metal frame 5*, filled in with brickwork 5 and formed with openings located opposite the upper and lower portions of the groups of tubes and with firing and ash-pit openings, detachable covers or doors 13 and 14 normally closing the first-mentioned openings and secured to the metal frame 5*, and plates 15' 16 also secured to said metal frame and provided with doors 15 and 16 respectively for closing the firing and ash-pit openings, substantially as described.

'7.- Steam -generating plant comprising a structure of solid refractory material formed with a plurality of chambers and with a flue that is common to all the chambersand is connected to each of them by an exit-passage in the rear wall thereof, each chamber being provided with a lower central support, two firegrates at opposite sides thereof, and upper lateral closures, a plurality of steam-generating units arranged one in each of said chambers and comprising a steam-drum and water vessel arranged one above the other and two series of bent tubes connecting said steamdrum to said water vessel, touching said upper lateral closures and inclined to each other so as to form with these parts and the sides,

front and rear walls of the surrou ndin g cham- 8. Steam-generating plant comprising a brickwork structure formed with a number of independent chambers 5 arranged in a straight row, a longitudinal flue 9 at the back of said chambers and having its roof arranged to form a platform behind the upper portions of said chambers, and a number of openings 9 connecting said flue with the rear ends of said chambers, each of said chambers being provided with a lower central support 6 having a normally-closed passage extending therethrough from the exterior of the chamber to the inner rear end thereof, two firegrates arranged at opposite sides of said central support, and upper removable lateral closures 7, 7 a plurality of steam-generating I unitslocated in said chambers and each comprising an upper steam-drum, a lower water vessel resting on said central support and two series of bent tubes 3 connecting said steamdrum and water vessel, in contact with said lateral closures and arranged to form with the steam-drum and water vessel and the walls of the chamber in which they'are placed, a central smoke-box and two lateral fireboxes, a main steam-pipe, separate branch pipes with valves connecting said steam-pipe to each of the steam-drums, a main blow-0d pipe,'and branch pipes with valves connecting said blow-off pipe to each of the water vessels, all, substantially as described and shown.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

JOHN ISAAC THORNYOROFT. Witnesses:

EDMUND S. SNEWIN, HUGH HUGHES. 

